Spanish

The first through eighth grade students receive instruction in Spanish culture and language. These lessons familiarize the students with the heritage from which many Spanish-speaking members of the Lancaster community come. It prepares them for the more intensive language study begun in grade seven and completed in eighth grade. This two year program has the students in class three periods each week, during which they complete the material in the Spanish I curriculum. Lecture and bookwork is complemented by project work and celebrations in the Spanish traditions. These activities are sometimes augmented by field trips or special events such as celebrating Mass in Spanish. The program prepares the students well for the foreign language placement examination taken before entering high school. Even more, it teaches them ways to learn about the world beyond the doors of our school.

Library

The library is more than a repository of books. It is a place where a child can begin a lifelong love of reading. It is a place where there are wonderful stories to be told and a place to spark the imagination. In the library, a student can research a subject in depth through books and reference materials, as well as access one of the computers for an Internet search.

Depending on the grade level, every student can withdraw one to four books at a time from the library. The books are scanned out when they are withdrawn and scanned in when they are returned. Books are due back in one week, but can be renewed as needed.

The school librarian sees students in grades kindergarten through fifth weekly for a library period where stories are read, literary genre are introduced, and research skills are taught and reinforced. Students in grades six through eight do not have a specific library period, but are able to withdraw books and utilize the reference materials as needed.

The physical education curriculum attempts to prepare the students for a life of fitness and activity. The concepts of team effort and good sportsmanship shape the expectations and actions of every class. Students begin the classes as Kindergarteners, and the program builds from one year to the next. Skills learned as younger students are refined and developed in later years.

As Christians we learn to respect the human body as a gift from God. We learn how to keep it healthy and safe through the study of nutrition, and basic first aid. Students who work together and support each other in physical games and activities grow to be adults who do the same.

Music

The Pennsylvania Standards for the Arts and Humanities is at the heart of St. Leo the Great School's music curriculum. Music should be a kinesthetic, aural, interdisciplinary, and spatial art form. In addition to the regular weekly classes, students experience choral performance to demonstrate learning within the program of study.

The first year begins the development of basic skills, with subsequent years building upon previous learning. Practicing self-control and participating in class are expected.

At least one time each year the individual classes perform for the school community. There is one performance at Christmas, and one at the end of the year. Through the generosity of community sponsors, we are able to make trips to public music performances from year to year. This involvement in the world of music broadens the life of the students and serves them well in their adult lives.

Art

Like the music curriculum, the art committee of the Diocese of Harrisburg developed their new program of study around the guidelines set up in the Pennsylvania Standards for the Arts and Humanities.

Students in Kindergarten through eighth grade receive instruction one time each week in the visual arts. The program of study follows an upward spiral, with each year building on the learning of the previous years. The art classroom is organized to optimize the time spent there. Students share tools and equipment, so care of these is emphasized. Cooperation and respect should guide all actions in the art studio.

Art appreciation is a special focus of St. Leo's art department. Each year students participate in displays of artwork during Grandfriends Day, Catholic Schools Week, and at the end of the year Spring Art Show. Selected student works of the seventh and eighth grade are entered into the Scholastic Arts Competition, and middle grade student work is sent for display in Harrisburg during Pennsylvania Arts in Education month. Due to the generosity of the Pennsylvania College of Art and Design, three students each year are awarded tuition scholarships for the Children's Art Classes.

There are also enrichment activities that vary each year, including Art Club for students in grades seven and eight, field trips, and other special visiting displays, exhibits, or performances, all arranged to enhance the development of well rounded young members of the world community.